Kapala explains Zesco’s $3.5bn debt

ENERGY Minister Peter Kapala says the debt owed by Zesco for power purchases could be attributed to the low water levels following the onset of the drought period in 2014/15. Speaking in Parliament, Friday, Kapala said Zesco’s total debt stood at US$3.5 billion as of September 2021. “The Report of the Auditor General on Accounts of Parastatal Bodies and Other Statutory Institutions for the Financial Year Ended 31st December 2019, revealed that ZESCO Limited owed it’s local and cross border power suppliers amounts totalling US$797,902,517.54 as at 31st December 2020. It should be noted that this is the debt owed by the company for power purchases from Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and also from emergency electricity power imports that can...